Dell Inspiron 518 Desktop Computer (Intel Core 2 Quad 320GB HDD, 2GB)
The Inspiron 518 is a welcome update to Dell's traditional, mainstream desktop lineBasic configurations start at $399, although our $784 review unit is a competitive showcase of some of Dell's more advanced configuration optionsWe wish Dell sold this system with 64-bit Windows Vista, as competing mainstream PCs from HP and Gateway have already made the switchHowever, even without that forward-looking operating system, the Inspiron 518 stands strong on performance and offers a useful case updateAnyone looking for a utilitarian PC with good value will like what they find in this computer
Although the Inspiron 518 has a new chassis design, the only significant changes from the old Inspiron 530 are a new black-with-silver-trim coloring and a tray on the top designed to cradle external devicesDell put two USB 2.0 ports on the rear edge of the tray, which gives you a convenient place to store, charge, and connect your digital camera, cell phone, or other portable, PC-compatible hardware
Configuration-wise, the Inspiron 518 has few unique features, although Dell charges a fair price for what you getDell currently offers fewer options for the Inspiron 518 than the Inspiron 530You can no longer add a Blu-ray drive or a Draft N wireless networking adapter, and you're limited to either integrated graphics or the low-end ATI Radeon HD 3450 graphics card featured in our review unitIf you really want those or other more advanced features in a midtower desktop, you can find them on Dell's XPS 420 or a system from another vendorStill, we're not sure what Dell would lose by making those features available here as wellGateway may not offer configurable PCs anymore, but HP's Pavilion m9300t offers a much wider range of options in a similar mainstream desktop
| Dell Inspiron 518 | Gateway DX4200 | |
| Price | $784 | $749 |
| CPU | 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 | 2.2GHz AMD Phenom X4 9550 |
| Memory | 2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM | 6GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM |
| Graphics | 256MB ATI Radeon HD 3450 | 256MB ATI Radeon HD 3450 |
| Hard drives | 320GB, 5,400rpm | 640GB, 7,200rpm |
| Optical drive | dual-layer DVD burner | dual-layer DVD burner |
| Networking | Gigabit Ethernet | Gigabit Ethernet |
| Operating system | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (32-bit) | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) |
| TV Tuner | No | No |
Compared with Gateway's new DX4200, the Inspiron 518 has half the hard-drive storage and a third as much RAMIf that extra storage is your primary concern, we'd suggest that the Gateway is your better bet in this price rangeThe Gateway's memory is probably overkill at the moment given the lack of consumer programs that can take advantage of 6GB of RAM, and indeed the impact on our benchmarks was less than we thought